Interfaith Lunch and Learn – Harvest Festival

Join us for an Interfaith Lunch & Learn in the Harvard Hillel sukkah! Come share a meal, connect across traditions, and celebrate the fall season. Please RSVP using this link

October 7 Memorial

Three years have passed since October 7, 2023. We will come together as a community to remember the lives lost, to honor those who were taken hostage and those who did not return, and to support one another.

Study Break & Bake: Cookie Decorating

Black and white cookie decorating at Hillel with Elle! Whether you want to be part of the baking process, come for a taste test, or just hang out, stop by for a little sweet treat!

The YARID Symposium

We’re thrilled to invite current students and recent alumni to join us for our inaugural symposium.
Register for the event here: The YARID – Harvard Hillel.

For this inaugural issue, we asked contributors to reckon with a claim now circulating widely: that the “golden age” of American Jewry — the postwar era of safety, prosperity, and influence — may be receding. Some contributors affirmed that premise; others complicated or rejected it outright. Each was asked to make the case for something that feels absent or underappreciated in Jewish life today, but holds real promise for what comes next. The symposium will bring that conversation to life, with a keynote address from Harvard President Alan Garber, panel discussions, and the chance to talk informally with the writers, editors, and advisory board members who built this issue.

Whether you’re a current student, a recent graduate back on campus, or just curious about where Jewish thought and culture are headed, we’d love to see you there. Learn more about the journal and the issue at theyarid.org.

Hillel Jews in Canoes

Join Harvard Hillel’s Jewish Outing Club for kayaking on the Charles! We’ll meet at the Harvard Square T stop (main entrance) at 10:30am, then head over to Paddle Boston (Kendall location) for 1.5 hours on the water before heading back to campus, arriving around 1pm.

RSVP here by 10/7 at 11:59pm to secure your spot. If you do not RSVP by this deadline, we cannot guarantee you a spot on the trip.

The Americanization of Antizionism with Shaul Kelner

Harvard Hillel and the Harvard Catholic Forum co-present a lecture and reception with Shaul Kelner of Vanderbilt University. Since the early 20th century, governments and political groups in Europe and the Middle East have mobilized a discourse of “antizionism” against local Jewish communities. Professor Kelner will explore how these discourses and practices have crossed to the United States and what they mean for American Jews today.

Boylston Hall 110 (Fong Auditorium), Harvard University, and livestreamed. All are welcome. Register here.

Co-sponsored by ADL New England, Combined Jewish Philanthropies: Center for Combating Antisemitism, HLSA Jewish Alumni Network, and the HBS Jewish Alumni Association.

Creative Hour: Vision Board

Take a break and get creative with Michal! Come make your own vision board – cut, paste, and create a collage of your goals, dreams, inspirations, and everything you want to bring into your life. No artistic experience needed – just bring yourself and your imagination!

Family Weekend Kickoff Bagels and Coffee

Kick off Family Weekend at Harvard Hillel! Students and their families are welcome to stop by the Harvard Hillel building for bagels and coffee before the weekend gets going. No registration needed – all are welcome.

Some Family Weekend events do require registration. See the full schedule and register on our Family Weekend 2026 page.

Refuseniks: The Interfaith Mobilization to Free Soviet Jews – Lunch with Shaul Kelner

In the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s, a worldwide human rights movement mobilized to secure the freedom to emigrate for Jews persecuted by the Soviet regime – and in the United States, Jewish and Christian groups joined forces to help. Join us to break bread and revisit this remarkable example of the power of interfaith coalitions with Shaul Kelner, Professor of Jewish Studies and Sociology at Vanderbilt University and author of A Cold War Exodus: How American Activists Mobilized to Free Soviet Jews.

A 20–25 minute presentation will be followed by conversation and Q&A. Lunch served. Open to students and faculty – all are welcome. Hosted by Harvard Hillel and cosponsored by the Harvard Catholic Forum.

RSVP requested: email elisha@hillel.harvard.edu.

ApiChorus Family Weekend Show

Join ApiChorus for a special Family Weekend show in the Rabb Room at Harvard Hillel! Bring your family and friends for a morning of music. All are welcome.

First-Year Movie Night

Join us for a cozy first-year movie night in the Hillel basement, featuring Monsters, Inc. with free pizza and ice cream! Come take a break from studying, hang out with other first-years, and enjoy a fun evening together.